The Flower and Produce Show is the highlight of the Gardening Club year, and last Tuesday’s event proved to be a highlight of our village year, too. The hall was a wonderful and joyous sight, with the benches full of colourful flowers, fruit and vegetables. Despite it being a difficult summer for gardeners, with so little rain and some very hot weather, the quality of the exhibits was very high. There was an impressive number of flower arrangements, from dainty arrangements in teacups to big airy displays of colourful perennials. Click here to see a handwritten chart of the top point scorers and click here to read the results in full.
The vegetable and fruit growers were on fine form, with excellent runner beans on show, plates of perfect figs and plums, and some artfully arranged mixed baskets of produce. Jeremy Curtis won first prize for his ‘most amusing vegetable with embellishments’ – a fantastical lizard created from a tromboncino squash! The Best Exhibit in Show went to the Gardening Club Chairwoman, Marion Jay, for a huge and perfectly formed Savoy cabbage.
The Junior entries included pretty flower arrangements in jam jars and some charmingly inventive miniature gardens. There were also prizewinning entries from children in other categories, which is very encouraging. The cookery and preserves were praised by the judge, who gave constructive feedback to all entrants.
There were a record number of entries in the needlecraft section, showcasing knitting, crochet, embroidery, felting, tapestry, patchwork and quilting. The winning embroidered wall hanging by Kate Carter demonstrated a number of skills and showed great creative artistry, and was particularly praised by the judge.
The Photography Exhibition displayed images of ‘Decay’, Vegetables’ and ‘Village Life’. The winning photograph, judged on a People’s Choice vote, was a still life of a cut red onion on a turquoise plate, by Patrick Hoyte.
The show was well attended and there was a convivial atmosphere in the hall, with lots of interest in the exhibits and happy chatting. Visitors enjoyed teas and a huge selection of sumptuous cakes.
The exhibited cakes, preserves, flowers and hanging baskets were auctioned at the end of the afternoon. The fruit and vegetables were taken to the village shop where you can now buy them by donation, with all proceeds going to The West Somerset Food Cupboard.
Thank you to my wonderful committee: Marion Jay, Roz Griffin, Rob Reed, Nigel Humphries and Peter Stenner. Thanks also to the judges – John Addison, Simon Brown, Jane Barbieri and Gary Mills – and the judges assistants; Veronica Clegg, Alison Manning, Nicole Stewart and Annie Dutton. And to Veronica for kindly presenting the cups. To Mark Oxtoby for his photo exhibition curation and organising the People’s Choice vote. Big thanks to Linda, Carrie, Annie, Jo and Nicole for teas, and to all the village bakers who contributed the fabulous range of cakes for the teas. Thank you to Liz and Rob Reed for running the raffle, and John Brady for voicing the raffle and auction. To Bill Hodgson for sorting out the audio system for the speeches, and to both Peter and Bill for photographing the event. Thanks also to Sarah and Mark for taking the fruit and veg to the village shop and selling it via donation. And last but certainly not least – thank you to everyone who entered, without whom there would be no show!
The Flower & Produce Show goes from strength to strength, inspiring us all to enjoy our gardening, cooking and creative skills. I know I won’t be the only one who went home thinking about what I might make to exhibit at next year’s show.
And don’t forget that the photos displayed at the show are now available to view in the church – well worth a visit.
Ingrid Popplewell
Chair, Wootton Courtenay Flower Show
Wootton Courtenay 
